We’ve learned that segmented campaigns drive a 3.4x higher return per impression (RPI) than generic campaigns. Timely pop-ups can have a great impact on your booking engine conversion rate. For example, a targeted campaign increased the conversion rate on our client’s booking engine by 61% only a month after the launch!

As a Direct Booking Coach, I often help hotels create tailored campaigns for their websites. That’s why I can share with you dos and don’ts of revenue-driving hotel website pop-ups!

Dos

Think like a guest. Before creating your campaign, decide at which stage of the booking process you want your website visitor to see it. The more you know about your guest’s booking behaviour, the better you will be able to convert them.

Hear from your guests. Try user testing to make sure your website experience makes sense, and that your content is relevant to your visitors. In one of our previous articles, we listed the benefits of testing in full booking cycles. For most hotels, it takes 21 days on average for the guest’s journey from the first website visit to booking. Taking this data into consideration can help you evaluate the success of your campaigns.

Be on time. From Valentine’s Day to Easter to Black Friday, to local events and holidays – our calendar is filled with opportunities for your campaigns. Try making your pop-ups festive to engage your visitors.

Make your tools work together. Identify the page on your website that drives the greatest amount of traffic and link it to your pop-up. This trick has proven to work extremely well with flash offers! We’ve done it with our client in Ireland. To convert more overseas visitors, we created a Nudge message for a flash sale at St Patrick’s day. The pop-up generated 12 direct bookings in a week!

Let your teams collaborate. The collaboration between your hotel’s marketing and revenue teams can positively impact your business. Working in a silo can reduce teams’ overall understanding of who your visitors really are and what their journey on your website looks like. Shared data and insights can help you create better-segmented campaigns and drive more conversions on your website.

Don’ts

Be visually inconsistent. The website is often the first touchpoint guests have with your hotel’s brand. A consistent visual identity is crucial for building an emotional connection with your website’s visitors. Remember, there is no second chance for first impressions!

Overload with information. When it comes to pop-ups, less is more. This type of campaign can feel invasive. To avoid that, you should display your short, impactful message to the right visitor at the right time. Don’t try to fit too much copy into the pop-up! Include only the most important information in your headline, and split the rest of the text into short sentences or bullet points.

Redirect. Map out the journey that takes your guest from the pop-up to the direct booking. Be wary of redirecting your visitor from the booking engine back to your website. Also, don’t forget to check your loading times: a page that doesn’t load can cause frustration and increase abandonment rates.

Give the same discount to all your guests. Offering discounted rates can increase occupancy and conversion rates during various seasons. Try creating campaigns for your returning guests. Why not offer them an additional discount for coming back to book direct?

Confuse with offers. It’s great to come up with a number of benefits for your direct bookers. But from our clients’ experiences, the clearer your offer is, the better. You might not want to mix discounts, room upgrades and complimentary drinks all in one pop-up. The diversity in offers can often confuse your website’s visitors. Make sure you make your benefits as clear as possible!